ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka may administer a third dose of a COVID-19 vaccine sometime in November or December this year if the need arises, after completing the vaccination of people over 30 followed by the 18-29 age group.
State Pharmaceutical Corporation (SPC) Chairman Dr Prasanna Gunasena said the National Advisory Committee on Communicable Diseases have been advised to be prepared for the rollout of a booster shot by the end of the year.
“We have been advised and recommended to prepare for a third dose by November or December to give the high risk population and people who are in high risk areas, and as SPC we are preparing for that,” Gunasena told reporters on August 28.
At a meeting held at the presidential secretariat last Friday (27), President Gotabaya Rajapaksa asked experts present at the discussion which should be prioritised between giving a booster shot and vaccinating people aged 18 to 29.
“The World Health Organisation (WHO) has not recommended the booster dose at the moment, although some countries have initiated it,” news footage recorded at the discussion showed Gunasena as telling the president.
Gunasesna said different variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, forms when a higher virus load is present and is spreading in the community.
“If we need to reduce that load, we need to vaccinate more people.In other words we need to have a wider coverage,” Gunasena said.
“A booster is needed if the immunity in the body is reduced after being fully vaccinated. According to our data, it will start to drop about five to six months after. Other countries who are giving a third dose have also prioritized high risk people and highly exposed people.”
The SPC chief said eight million doses of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine that’s due in September can be used to vaccinate the over-18 demographic with no hassle.
“We will get another four million doses of Sinopharm in October. By then, if it is necessary we can go for a booster dose, because by then most would’ve been vaccinated for five months,” he said.
Meanwhile, people over 30 who have not yet received a single dose of any vaccine must get their first jab as soon as possible without worrying about the second dose, said Gunasena.
“One common thing we have observed in patients who show severe symptoms and those who have died is that they have not taken the vaccine properly.
“There are people who have not taken the vaccine and people who have only taken one dose. A considerable immunity has not built up in them. People with other severe comorbidities are also among them,” he said.
Gunasesna said vaccination centres are operating Island wide and those above 30 years of age can go to any vaccine centre to get the first dose.
“We will receive four million Sinopharm vaccines in the first week of September, so there won’t be any problem in giving the second dose,” he said. (Colombo/Aug30/2021)